Looking Back on Tom Selleck’s Iconic ‘Friends’ Guest Role That Came Before ‘Blue Bloods’
The ‘Blue Bloods’ star shares what it was really like playing Monica's love interest on the hit show
Key Takeaways
- Tom Selleck appeared in multiple seasons of 'Friends' as Dr. Richard Burke.
- Burke became Monica's love interest despite their 21-year age gap.
- Selleck has spoken fondly of his time on the sitcom over the years.
Tom Selleck has brought to life some iconic roles throughout his career. From his starring part in Magnum, P.I. to his beloved Blue Bloods era, the actor has brought grit and gusto to every character he plays—and his work spans across genres as well! Selleck showed off his comedy chops in the 1987 film Three Men and a Baby, but there’s one particular role in the genre that folks love to look back on: Dr. Richard Burke in Friends.
Over the years, rumors have swirled that Selleck was advised not to take on the guest role in the hit sitcom, with folks believing it would negatively affect his career after his Magnum, P.I. success, but luckily, he took the leap—and the rest is history. Here, see what the actor has said about his time playing Dr. Richard Burke.
Tom Selleck shined brightly in ‘Friends’
In Season 2 of the sitcom, Tom Selleck made his debut as Dr. Richard Burke, an ophthalmologist who eventually becomes Monica’s love interest. A friend of her parents, their 21-year age difference ultimately drove them apart, as his character did not wish to have children, while Monica had dreamed of starting a family. After their split, however, his character eventually makes his way back to screens, professing his love for Monica despite her being involved with Chandler. Even though Monica and Chandler ultimately ended up together, fans still adored Selleck’s multi-episode stint on the series, and it’s an experience the actor still looks back on fondly.
“People talk to me about my role on Friends all the time,” Selleck told Parade back in 2024. “It was a lovely experience, something I didn’t see coming. They just explained this idea and you had to make a leap of faith. They didn’t have a script or anything. I remember I was supposed to do three shows, and on the third show at the table read, somebody said, ‘Oh, that’s right, this is your last show. I wish you could come back.’ I said, ‘Well, nobody asked me.’ So that turned into 10 shows.”
Despite already being an established actor, Selleck recalled feeling “scared to death” during an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show. “The hardest thing is to guest on a show,” he shared. “I try to relax the new actors because that’s really hard to come on a show where everybody’s up to speed.”
He continued, “I had done Taxi a long time before, but I hadn’t done a sitcom, so I was really nervous. And Courteney helped a lot. Courteney’s a big help. But that group is just an incredible group of friends. They obviously became friends in life as well as on the show, and it shows. It was a wonderful place to work and we ended up doing about nine of them.”
Want to look back on Tom Selleck’s time on Friends? Stream the episodes on HBO Max.
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